House General Aviation Caucus Membership Hits Magic Number of 218

Broad, bipartisan support for general aviation priorities in Congress

House General Aviation Caucus Co-Chairs Sam Graves (R-MO) and John Barrow (D-GA) on Sept. 12 announced that, for the first time in its history, more than half off the House of Representatives had joined the group. The current tally stands at 223 members.  The purpose of the House General Aviation Caucus is to inform Members and staff about the importance of General Aviation (GA) to our economy and transportation system.

“Crossing the 218 mark is a great victory for general aviation,” said Congressman Graves.  “Education is key to our efforts to highlight the everyday concerns of America’s pilots, so having the majority of the House participating in the caucus is important. General aviation carries 166 million passengers to around 5,000 communities over 27 million flight hours each year, and more than two-thirds of these flights are for business purposes.”

“General aviation plays an important role in Georgia’s economy and across the country,” said Congressman Barrow. “This is an important milestone for the industry. Our mission is to inform folks about General Aviation, and having a majority of the House of Representatives will help achieve that goal. This is the largest, most bipartisan caucus in Congress, and I’m honored to join with my colleagues to continue to advocate for this industry.”

General Aviation groups praised the accomplishment. 

Mark Baker, President and CEO of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) said, “This is an important milestone and we are extremely pleased to see that so many members of the House are willing to engage on the issues that affect general aviation. These leaders recognize the importance of GA to our national transportation system and our economy. On behalf of AOPA’s nearly 400,000 members, I also want to thank Caucus Co-Chairs Rep. Sam Graves and Rep. John Barrow. Without their active leadership, the caucus could not be so successful and far-reaching.”

Pete Bunce, President and CEO of the General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA), noted, “This achievement is due to the tremendous leadership and hard work of Congressmen Graves and Barrow and their staffs, and we are grateful for their efforts.  We also want to thank all of the members who have joined the House GA Caucus because they recognize general aviation’s contribution to strengthening our society and economy.  We look forward to continuing to build the ranks of the Caucus and working with members on the critical issues facing general aviation.”

“The Aircraft Electronics Association is pleased to see the roster for the General Aviation Caucus continue to grow,” added Paul Derks, President of the Aircraft Electronic Association. “This bipartisan caucus indicates that Congress not only supports the value of the general aviation industry, but also understands the significant impact this industry contributes to the nation’s overall economy.”

And National Air Transportation Association (NATA) President and CEO Thomas L. Hendricks concluded, “The National Air Transportation Association continues to be impressed with the efforts of the House General Aviation Caucus and the bipartisan leadership of Representative Sam Graves and Representative John Barrow.  NATA has also encouraged its member companies across the country to reach out to their respective congressional representatives to join the Caucus. We are so pleased to see that their efforts have paid off as well as the growing influence that the Caucus brings inside the halls of Congress to advocate for our industry.”

General Aviation is a catch-all category that includes all non-scheduled, non-military aviation. There are more than 223,000 active GA aircraft in the United States, which serve nearly 19,000 small and regional airports – many more than the 500 commercial airports in the U.S. These airports help connect people and industries that do not always have easy access to our commercial airports.

The GA industry employs nearly 1.3 million workers and contributes more than $150 billion to the U.S. economy annually.  In 2009, U.S. general aviation airplane manufacturers delivered 1,587 airplanes worth $9.1 billion with more than 50 percent of total billings tied to exports.  In fact, the GA industry is one of the few remaining U.S. manufacturing industries that provides a trade surplus for the U.S.